The invention relates to a floor covering.
Floor coverings such as carpets are generally secured to the floor either by mechanical means under tension or by means of an adhesive. Since the dimensional changes of a floor covering as a function of temperature and moisture differ from those of the floor, the floor covering may become uneven despite the fact that great care is exercised in laying the floor covering. On the other hand, the application of an adhesive to the floor covering and the floor is very complicated, time-consuming and expensive. This is at least in part due to the fact that the adhesive must be applied uniformly. Moreover, the floor covering must be carefully cut so as to conform to the contour of the floor prior to adhesively securing the floor covering to the floor. The reason is that, as a rule, the floor covering is bonded to the floor so rapidly that shifting of the floor covering in order to compensate for errors in laying the same becomes impossible very soon after applying the floor covering to the floor.
In general, then, great care must be exercised and a considerable amount of time expended in order to ensure that the floor covering is properly laid.
It has become known to secure a floor covering to a floor using an adhesive band which is coated with adhesive on both sides. This, also, is complicated and requires very precise work. Furthermore, the floor covering does not always remain in uniform contact with the floor under the influence of temperature and moisture variations.
The surface to which a covering for a floor, wall or ceiling is to be applied via an adhesive must be smooth in order to obtain good adhesion over the entire contact area. In addition, many coverings comprise or consist essentially of synthetic resins which are relatively difficult to deform. This presents a disadvantage for lengths of coverings which are sold in the form of rolls. The coverings tend to retain the shape of the rolls and it is therefore extremely difficult to make the coverings conform to the configurations of the surfaces which are to be covered. The preceding considerations make it necessary to employ skilled labor in order to properly apply a covering to a surface. This is particularly true in light of the fact that a firm adhesive bond between a covering and a surface developes quite rapidly so that it is very difficult to cut the covering for the purpose of making corrections once the covering has been applied to the surface.
In certain instances, the synthetic resins contained in coverings for floors, walls and ceilings form chemical compounds with the adhesives. Not infrequently, such a chemical compound causes the synthetic resin to undergo relatively rapid aging so that the synthetic resin becomes unsightly after a fairly short time interval. Accordingly, the adhesive must be selected with great care and the selection of the adhesive should be performed by a person skilled in the art of applying coverings. If the adhesive is selected improperly, the covering may quickly become unsightly thereby necessitating premature replacement of the covering.